


His Equal

by rach320



Category: DCU, DCU (Comics), Smallville, Superman (Comics), Superman - All Media Types
Genre: F/M, Season 9 episode 18 rewrite, because sometimes red k gives Clark bursts of insight when properly prompted, episode: s9e18, s9e18, upgrade re-write
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-05
Updated: 2020-01-05
Packaged: 2021-02-27 09:08:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,104
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22134553
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rach320/pseuds/rach320
Summary: What if something besides how those close to him had betrayed him when Zod had infected Clark with red kryptonite came to mind when Zod was trying to show Clark how isolated he was? What if Clark recognized that there was someone in his life who he could trust, who he had always been able to trust? What would have happened if Clark finally recognized and faced what he had with Lois, albeit, under the influence of red kryptonite?
Relationships: Clark Kent/Lois Lane
Comments: 10
Kudos: 61





	His Equal

Kal was furious. Oliver and Chloe had betrayed him, making kryptonite weapons and not even telling him that they existed. What if someone had managed to take the weapons? What if Tess had managed to get a hold of them? Didn’t Clark at least have the right to know that they were amassing weapons that could kill him so that he would at least be prepared for the potential danger on his life?

He was so angry, his vision blurring as he saw red thinking about the numerous times he had been betrayed by those he thought were trustworthy, by those he had considered his friends. He could feel the red kryptonite he’d been exposed to fueling his anger and he welcomed it, welcomed the rush of power he felt and how the red k finally just let him feel, let him act without overthinking for once in his god damn life.

Of course, those who betrayed him may wish that he was still repressing the feelings of rage that were quickly accompanied by thoughts detailing all the ways that people had betrayed his trust, the trust he had tried as hard as he could to build in all of his relationships. Nor could he bare to stomach how naive he must be normally to constantly forgive these people when they constantly betrayed him and did nothing to earn his trust back. How he could give them multiple chances, he’d never understand.

Chloe had betrayed him numerous times despite the constant trust he has placed in her. Oliver promised that they’d work together, that they were a part of a team. Lex… Kal didn’t even have time to think about how Lex had betrayed his trust from the very beginning. And Lana for that matter… Kal couldn’t think about it, how they could never trust each other and how it was the cause of so much heartbreak.

And then the same people had the gall to be upset when he stopped trusting them back, always putting all of the blame for the lack of trust onto him when trust was a two-way street. When he pulled away, got friendship and advice elsewhere. When he got mad at their deceitful ways, tired of their hypocritical expectations that put him on a pedestal they didn’t bother to even try to reach themselves, and actually stood up for himself for once, actually called them on their bullshit, they got mad at him! Turned the tables back at him, about how they could never trust him.

He kept a secret for self-preservation. They kept a secret because they were cowards and knew they were making the wrong decision. There was a difference and Clark had learned that at an early age.

It was a shame no one else has seemed to.

Zod broke through his ramblings finally, saying something that seemed to pierce the haze Clark’s anger had put him in instead of fueling it.

“Your closest friends fear you because they will never understand you. And how could they?” Zod smirked, delivering what he thought would be the final blow. “You need me. Who else in your world could ever truly be your equal?”

Kal had the retort on his tongue, that he has no equal, that he was the son of Jor-El and that no one, man or Kryptonian, was equal to him, the son who took the best from two great worlds. But something stopped him. Or should he more adequately say, the memory of someone, someone who may not have his powers, but who was his equal in every way that his supposedly trusted confidants and fellow Kryptonians were not.

So instead, Kal smirked. “Nice try, Zod. I see what you did there. But didn’t you just say I had become far too calculating to play the naive farm boy?” Taking a step forward he stared down at Zod, looking at the man as if he was nothing more than the gum beneath his shoe. “Besides… You’re wrong.”

“Oh?” Zod quirked a brow, wondering where Kal-El was going with his little speech. “And how am I wrong?”

“There is someone who is my equal. Who doesn’t fear me. Who understands me. All of me.”

“And pray tell, who is this mythical being, Kal-El?” Zod asked, even if he already suspected he knew the answer.

“Unimportant. Just know… Your games won’t work on me. Learn to integrate, or you’ll have to deal with me.” Kal glared down at his reluctant ally. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have more important places to be.”

And with that, Clark sped out of the building, hearing in on a very familiar heartbeat.

Yes, he had more important things to do than ruminate on betrayals and word games.

And that thing was apparently still at the Daily Planet.

~~~

Lois was working steadfastly on her next article—some fluff piece about an old theatre downtown. Tess was trying to get her to quit, but it wouldn’t work. The Luthor crony could throw as many fluff pieces as she wanted at the crime reporter, but Lois wasn’t going to fold. She didn’t work her way up through the inquisitor and survive Lex as her boss to quit now. Oh no, the Daily Planet was still the best investigate newspaper in the world and Lois was going to work for it, no matter what Tess wanted.

The sound of feet drew her attention from her article and she looked up to find Clark walking into the bullpen. Something was different in his walk, in his look, but Lois couldn’t figure out what it was. He had been becoming more and more confident, more of a man than a boy, but there was something different about the confidence he was exuding now.

“Smallville.” She grinned, pushing her chair back to greet him. What are you doing here so late?”

Kal smirked. “I could ask the same of you, Lois.”

“Oh, just finishing Tess’ most recent attempt to get me to quit. Just have to send it off to Randall and then I am out of here.”

Lois squeaked slightly as Clark pulled her close to him, wrapping his arms around her waist. A hand spread to span the whole of the small of her back, pressing her lower torso into his. “What do you say we get out of here?” He tilted his head to the side, lowering it just slightly so that his forehead touched hers.

She drew in a shaky breath. Somehow, Clark always managed to knock her off balance, the only one to ever do so as efficiently as he does. Thankfully, she knew she knocked him off balance just as well. Taking a quick glance around the newsroom to ensure that they truly were alone here, Lois pushed her weight forward only the balls of her feet, pressing her body flush against his. Lightly brushing her lips against his, just enough to tease, she pulled away slightly only when she heard his responding growl. “What do you have in mind, farm boy?”

Kal smirked at her teasing nature, pulling her hard against him and knocking her slightly off balance, he smiled lasciviously down at her. “Well, I believe I still owe you Clark Kent’s tour of the galaxy, don’t I?”

~~~

Lois gulped as she stepped out of her car at the farm, something in her gut telling her that something was very, very wrong. During the entire car ride, Clark was oddly physically affection. Not that her farm boy ever shied from holding her hand, or placing his hand on her lower back as they walked through a crowd. No, Clark was all about those old subtle displays of courtship that should have driven her insane but with him, somehow didn’t. But right now he was… well he was being aggressively sexual with his touch. And while Lois didn’t mind it, not one bit, they had decided to take it slow. And this… she thought of how his hand had slowly climbed higher and higher up her thigh as she drove to the farm… this didn’t feel like slow.

“So where does this tour of the galaxy start?” She quipped. “I may not know the farm as well as you do, Smallville, but I did live here for a few years. You’re going to have to really work to show me something here that I don’t know.”

Something about his smirk as he replied to her set her stomach off even more. Something was off about Clark, she just couldn’t put her finger on what. “Well, you never know, Lo. I might just be able to surprise you.”

“And that surprise is going to start in the barn?” She followed him cautiously up to the loft, watching as he took out an old, very full and well-used journal.

Kal leaned up against the windowsill, crossing her arms in front of his chest. “Well,” he tilted his head towards the night sky outside the window, “it technically starts out there.”

Lois gulped again at seeing his casually confident pose, this time not entirely out of nerves and instead at the pure unadulterated attraction she felt to him right now. He was wearing black jeans and a black t-shirt, motorcycle boots completing the look. The only part of him that at all reminded her of the farm boy she had come to know so well was his tousled hair and even that was somehow different. He was still Clark but he was different somehow. He almost seemed… unburdened. Yes, that was the difference. From the moment she had met him, Clark had always appeared to carry the weight of the world on his shoulders. And yet for some reason, right now, it wasn’t there.

“Clark… I’ve seen the view out of your barn window before.”

He shook his head. “Not like I have.” His eyes stalked her carefully as she walked closer to him. When she was within arm’s reach, he grabbed her close, unable to resist touching her. Wrapping his arms slightly around her, Kal pressed his lips to hers.

Lois yelped at the sudden movement—one moment Clark was leaning against the windowsill and the next he was standing and his arms were surrounding her. She quickly become lost in the kiss, as always happened. Clark’s presence was all-encompassing, his body surrounding hers completely as he kissed her thoroughly. Resting her hands against his shoulders, Lois’ eyes closed as his tongue tangled with hers. Her body was pressed against him, allowing her to feel in detail the hard planes of his body. His hands roamed her body before settling on her ass, squeezing it as he pulled her against him. Lois gasped into the kiss as she felt the evidence of his arousal. This was moving so fast, too fast, for their promise to go slowly.

She pushed against his shoulders, hoping that Clark got the hint. He kissed her one last time, one more lingering kiss, before finally, Clark pulled away. Lois gasped for air, trying to keep her wits about her when her body was screaming at her brain to shut up, to just let the moment happen. “So is Clark Kent’s tour of the galaxy really just a ploy to get girls up to your barn for a make-out session? Just how many innocent girls have you seduced this way, Smallville?”

Okay, so maybe it wasn’t the boundary setting she had hoped for, but Lois’ brain was still currently scrambled and that was the best it could put together at the moment. Besides, it worked, Clark pulling back and giving her just enough room to start actually putting her brain together again.

Kal sobered, recognizing the nervous babbling and quips for what they were. “Lois, you’re the only one I’ve ever offered to show my version of the galaxy too.”

Lois was stunned by the sincerity in his voice, in his gaze. The sheer intensity of it was astounding and if his firm hands weren’t still holding her in place, she swore she would have stumbling in that moment. “I… I am?”

The name of his past love went unspoken in that moment, and Kal kicked himself, his stupid normal self for ever making this incredible woman feel like a second choice. He was always so uncertain, so hung up on the past and the familiar, so afraid of his future and his potential, and he had ended up hurting this magnificent woman in the process. It was a miracle she gave him another chance to begin with after that. And Kal wasn’t about to make the same mistakes again; he wasn’t going to take her for granted ever again.

And that started with letting her in on the real Clark Kent. But first, she had to know the truth.

“Lo…” He started slowly, lowering his head to maintain eye contact with her. “You are the only one who I’ve ever wanted to share this with, the only one I’ve ever wanted to tell just why I always stare up at the night sky.” He smiled slowly, being uncharacteristically sweet for being injected with red kryptonite, but then again, the last time he had been infected with the meteor rock around her, she had brought out a similar sweetness.

“Why?” It was a simple question, but one she deserved an answer to, Lois thought. Flowery words were all well and good, but she needed to know why. Why was she different from everyone else who had ever held a place in his life?

“Because somehow… despite not knowing all of me… you understand me, better than anyone else; you always have. And because you are the only one who has ever been able to claim that space. Others people… they may know more about me than you, they may know more facts, have a longer history with me, but you are the only one who knows me inside and out even though you don’t have all the facts. And I want you to have all the facts now.”

Lois felt the sudden need for more space between them at his admittance. Pushing down at his arms, she felt him reluctantly comply to her request and she immediately put several steps between them, going to his desk and randomly opening and closing doors, anything to avoid his gaze. That didn’t stop it from searing holes into her back as he followed her every movement.

Finally finding a distraction, she pulled out a heavy lead jewelry box and frowned. Why did Clark have this in the barn? “Well, that’s sure some statement, Clark and hey, what’s this?”

“It’s not just a statement, Lois, it’s the truth.” Kal would have been annoyed, but he was well-versed in the Lane bolt reflex by now.

Lois opened the box, trying to ignore how just unsubtle her transition was and how Clark wasn’t letting her get away with it. A green meteor rock greeted her and she was surprised that Clark had this. She didn’t know why anyone except for Luthor would collect the thing. “Smallville, why do you have—“ she turned around, the words stopping in her mouth when she saw Clark, who had just moments before been so confident and oh so sturdy, crumple to the ground.

Tossing the box to the side, she immediately rushed towards him. “Clark! Clark, are you okay? What’s wrong?”

“Lois…” Kal gritted his teeth from where he laid on the ground. He could feel the beads of sweat forming on his forehead, could feel the similar kryptonite poisoning overtaking his body, causing him to feel as if his blood was on fire. “I need you… I need you to…”

“To what, what do you need?”

“Close the…” Kal blinked hard, the world swarming around him, vision spotting. “Close the…”

“Clark!” Lois screamed as his eyes rolled back into his head. She cradled his head, resting it in her lap as she sat down next to him. “Close what? Oh god, why haven’t we had the allergy talk? That’s date number three conversation, Lane!” She shook her head, knowing that she hadn’t asked because she had thought that she would have known about any allergies after living with him. Apparently, her logic was flawed however because this was clearly an allergic reaction to something.

He was sweating more and more and Lois brushed his damp hair off his forehead. She should call an ambulance. That’s what she should do. Especially because the sweat appeared to be tinted red and she could have sworn his skin was turning green. And well… Lois wasn’t a doctor but she knew that that wasn’t normal.

Gently easing his head onto the ground, Lois went to retrieve her phone from where she had left it on his desk. It was next to the still open box of meteor rock. “Close the box!” She exclaimed. That was the only thing in the room that she could possibly close. So, closing the box and resolving to call for an ambulance if that didn’t appear to help the situation, Lois quickly slammed the lid of the box closed.

Turning around to face him, Lois was surprised to see the immediate improvement in Clark. The color had returned to his face, his shaking had stopped. And while he was still sweating, it didn’t appear as dire as before. Glancing back at the box, Lois thought about what it contained. Was Clark allergic to meteor rock? How had Lois not know? How the hell had he survived growing up in Smallville with a meteor rock allergy?

Crouching back down next to him, she gathered his head back in her lap. The situation didn’t appear dire and Lois knew that Clark had a weird phobia of the hospital—even if he always insisted that she go to one when she was hurt. Slowly, she watched as Clark seemed to regain consciousness, his face scrunching. She stroked his cheek, “Clark?” She called out cautiously.

Clark squeezed his eyes closed hard, feeling the accompanying hangover that could only ever be accompanied by red kryptonite exposure. The memories of the past few hours rushed back to him and Clark groaned. How Zod had found out about the effects of red kryptonite Clark didn’t know, but it only solidified how dangerous he was. The revelations the infection had forced him to acknowledge, the words he had said…

“Clark?” Lois called again, gently stroking his cheek, hoping upon hope that he’d wake up.

Lois. Oh god, Lois. She deserved an answer to all of his. Clark’s eyes shot open. “Lois.” He breathed, finding her staring down at him, deep concern in her tear-brimmed eyes. “Lois, I’m okay.”

She breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank god, Clark. I had no clue what was happening. You were… you were just…”

“I know.”

“What didn’t you tell me that you were allergic to meteor rock, Clark? We live in the meteor capital of the world! I think that’s some pretty important information.”

Closing his eyes once again, Clark knew that he had a decision to make. Lois had unknowingly offered him the perfect out, but his own words were haunting him. ‘ _You are the only one who knows me inside and out even though you don’t have all the facts. And I want you to have all the facts now.’_ That’s what he had told her. And those words weren’t wrong.

“Lo…” He started slowly, still staring up at her eyes. “I’m not… I’m not allergic to the meteor rock, per say. I’m…. It’s… It’s poisonous to me… to my body’s chemical make-up.”

Her brow scrunched as she took in his words. “How could it be poisonous to you? It didn’t even touch you?”

“The radiation.” He stated, forcing himself to sit up. While he was feeling much better, he was still feeling slightly shaky. “The radiation is what is poisonous to me. That’s why I keep it in lead. The lead blocks the radiation.”

“Then why do you even have it at all if it’s poisonous to you by simply being in the same room?”

Her tone was turning insistent, her concern for his well-being morphing into a demand to know what had happened, to solve the mystery he was slowly presenting her. Clark smirked, remembering what he had called her years ago. Pitbull on a pant leg she could be sometimes, especially with those she loved, but that’s what made her such a great journalist.

Bracing his fists on the floor, Clark pushed himself into a standing position. He reached out and offered a hand to her. “Come, I think it’s time I give you Clark Kent’s actual tour of the galaxy.”

“Clark, what does that have to do with any of this?”

“You’ll see.”

With a heavy sigh, Lois took his hand and followed him over to the windowsill. She let him guide her hand to point at a specific constellation of stars. 

“Do you see the wolf, Lois?”

“Yes.” She nodded, not understanding where he was going with this.

“Do you see how it’s missing an eye?”

  
“Yes…”

“There used to be an eye there. And that eye was a planet that existed several galaxies away. Years ago, that planet exploded. The meteor rocks are the remnants of that planet.”

Lois frowned. “Okay, I knew you were into astronomy but how does that explain why the rocks are poisonous to you?”

“Because…” Clark took in a deep breath as he took his gaze from the sky and turned to face her. “Because…” He chuckled. “God, with how many times I rehearsed this in my head you think I’d be able to say it by now.”

“Well, just spit it out, Smallville.”

“You’re the first one I’ve ever chosen to tell, Lo, give me a second.”

That confession stilled Lois, calming some of her burgeoning irritation as he seemingly round-a-bout way of answering her questions.

“Lois… The meteor rock is poisonous to me because I’m from that planet. I came to earth in the first meteor shower and the Kents found me and took me in, raised me as their own.”

Lois’ eyes widened, desperately searching his face for any sign that he was kidding her, any sign that this was just an elaborate practical joke. But all she saw in his face was sincerity and even though her brain was screaming at her that this had to be false, that he couldn’t be telling her the truth, her gut was telling her that it was the truth. A million incidents flitted through her head, random moments and odd silences finally making sense, all of his miracle saves, his savior complex, everything all of a sudden making sense.

“You’re… You’re…” She frowned again, a new thought popping into her head. “You’re the blur, aren’t you?”

Now it was Clark’s turn to be surprised. Somehow, he hadn’t expected her to put that together. He should have known better, had seen her crack cold cases with less clues than what he had given her. “I… Yes. I am.”

“We… We have so much to talk about, Smallville.” She sat down on the couch in the loft. Staring at her hands, Lois wanted to feel slighted, to feel as if he had betrayed her somehow. But she found that she couldn’t. His words from earlier combined with his admittance that he had never chosen to tell anyone this secret before stuck in her head and halting any feelings of anger she may have at being kept in the dark for so long.

“Whatever you want to know, Lois, I’ll tell you anything. Everything. Whatever you need, even if… even if that’s space.”

Her head shot up and Lois glared at him. “Clark, I may have more questions than even I know what to do with right now, but that doesn’t mean I need space. Start talking, Smallville. From the beginning. And don’t you dare leave anything out.”

Clark grinned, unable to think of a more Lois-like response to hearing the truth about him. The worlds he said to Zod earlier were the truth and weirdly, he was thankful for the truth the red kryptonite had forced him to face. She was his equal. The only one who knew him completely even without all the pieces. And now she would know everything.

“Well…” Clark started. “Krypton, that’s where I’m from, was dying.” And so Clark started at the beginning. And somehow, as Lois listened attentively to his story, he knew that everything would be okay.

Just as long as she was always by his side.

**Author's Note:**

> Hello I am alive!
> 
> Grad school if forever and always killing me and zapping my energy and keeping me from writing fanfic. I do have a story in the works but the sequel isn't finished yet and trust me, you don't want me to post that story unless the sequel is finished and I can commit to posting both of them! (Believe me, if I only posted the first story, you might kill me).
> 
> In the meantime, enjoy this lovely re-write I came up with! Let me know what you think!


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